Items Similar to Meissen Porcelain Bear, Johann Gottlieb Kirchner, Johan Joachim Kaendler, 1735
Video Loading
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 22
Meissen Porcelain Bear, Johann Gottlieb Kirchner, Johan Joachim Kaendler, 1735
About the Item
Hard porcelain bear modeled and painted in gray-brown and black
Manufacture of Meissen, by Johann Gottlieb Kirchner and Johan Joachim Kaendler, 1735
It measures 2.79 in x 3.81 in x 2.48 in (7.1 cm x 9.7 x 6.3 cm)
Weight: 0.465 lb (211 g)
State of conservation: a glued paw.
Meissen porcelain has dominated the European market ever since it was first produced. The German manufacturer was the first to produce porcelain in Europe and had a stable production as early as the second decade of the XVIII century. A great enthusiast, Prince Augustus the Strong of Saxony, in fact, invested a lot of capital and energy in producing the precious material. Under the very same Augustus, some of the greatest sculptors and artists of the late Baroque period were called upon to participate in the enterprise: among these Johann Gottlieb Kirchner (1706–1768) and Johan Joachim Kaendler (1706–1775), who were particularly renowned for both delightful animal figures and an imaginative and very wide production of figures and characters.
This small hard porcelain sculpture shows a seated bear with its head lowered toward its legs. The animal has a docile attitude and looks up at the viewer from below. The small form is made with the style and technique characteristic of Johann Gottlieb Kirchner, and is an exact miniature replica of the well-known large sculpture from 1732 (now in the Animal Gallery of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen in Dresden). Indeed, it shares all the features of the large sculpture. Precisely for this model, Otto Walcha hypothesizes a collaboration between the two artists: Kirchner would have forged the bear, and Kaendler would have provided the finishing touches on the fur, as the former was unable to work due to an illness. (Otto Walcha, Meissen Porzellan, Dresda, 1973, p. 468, n. 29). This bear matches Kaendler's models: its fur is highlighted by minute incisions and then painted with thin brush strokes which meet on the muzzle. These strokes then fall neatly down the back, starting from the vertebrae.
However, in the archive documents, it is recorded that both Modellmeisters (master modelers) created large-sized bear models for Augustus the Strong's Japanese Palace.
From the archives, it is also documented that multiple copies of the large-sized bear model, both in achrome and polychrome versions, were produced for the Japanese Palace. On the other hand, there were only three colored specimens of the small-sized bear model produced in 1735, each measuring 7 centimeters like ours. (S. Wittwer, The gallery of Meissen animals: Augustus the Strong's menagerie for the Japanese palace in Dresden, Monaco 2006, p. 303). Only a few pieces had the crossed swords mark under the paw, and it is also absent in our specimen.
Bibliography:
O. Walcha, Meissen Porzellan, Dresda, 1973, p. 468, n. 29;
S. Wittwer, The gallery of Meissen animals: Augustus the Strong's menagerie for the Japanese palace in Dresden, Monaco 2006;
U. Pietsch, Meissen Porzellanplastik von Gottlieb Kirchner und Johan Johachim Kaendler, Monaco 2006, pp. 148-149 n. 218.
- Attributed to:J.J. Kaendler (Maker)
- Dimensions:Height: 2.8 in (7.1 cm)Width: 3.59 in (9.1 cm)Depth: 2.49 in (6.3 cm)
- Style:Baroque (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1730-1739
- Date of Manufacture:Circa 1735
- Condition:Repaired: A glued paw. It is an old restoration. A glued paw.
- Seller Location:Milano, IT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU4352215537901
About the Seller
4.3
Vetted Seller
These experienced sellers undergo a comprehensive evaluation by our team of in-house experts.
Established in 1860
1stDibs seller since 2018
19 sales on 1stDibs
Typical response time: 4 hours
Associations
International Confederation of Art and Antique Dealers' Associations
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Milano, Italy
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 14 days of delivery.
More From This SellerView All
- Ancient Meissen Pair of Porcelain Sugar Bowls with Flower Knobs, Circa 1760By Meissen PorcelainLocated in Milano, ITPair of porcelain sugar bowls Meissen, circa 1748-1775 Marked with crossed swords and number “92” of the gilder They measure 5.11 in (13 cm) x 5.11 in ...Category
Antique 1750s German Rococo Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Maiolica Pitcher Antonio Maria Coppellotti Manufacture, Lodi, Circa 1735By Antonio Maria CoppellottiLocated in Milano, ITMajolica pitcher Antonio Maria Coppellotti Manufacture Lodi, circa 1735 Majolica decorated in cobalt blue monochrome It measures 7.36 in hight x 8.07 x 4.52 (h 18.7 cm x 20.5 x 11.5...Category
Antique 1730s Italian Baroque Ceramics
MaterialsMaiolica
- Mechanical Equatorial Sundial, Johann Michael Bergauer, Ante 1745By Johann Michael BergauerLocated in Milano, ITJohann Michael Bergauer (Simonsfeld, 1676 - Innsbruck, 1745 circa) Mechanical equatorial sundial Signed: Michael Bergauer Insprugg? Innsbruck? Ante 1745 Gilded and silvered brass; glass. Measures: closed 1.29 x 3.50 x 4.92 in (33 x 89 x 125 mm); open 5.19 x 3.50 x 3.81 in (132 x 89 x 97 mm). Weight: the sundial 0.49 lb (224 g); the case 0, 20 lb (95 g) Original wooden case covered in brown leather. State of conservation: very good. It has some signs of use. The spring that allowed for the two parts of the instrument to remain open is missing (absent even in the comparative specimens kept in museums). The sundial is composed of two overlapping plates hinged together on the north edge. The base plate is octagonal and is supported by three turned legs. The upper face is gilded and a compass with a magnetic variation index has been inserted. The rest of the surface is occupied by a rich decoration of engraved scrolls, centered around the inscription “Michael Bergauer Insprugg”. A foldable oval support with a plumb-bob is attached with a hinge on the southern edge. On the reverse of the base plate a table of the latitudes of some European cities (expanded with the vertical writing “Meiland 40” on the edge and “Rome” deleted) and of Jerusalem has been engraved. A Cam marked for 0 °-70 ° is applied near the northern edge. This can be adjusted to change the inclination of the upper plate according to the latitude; originally a spring, now lost, made it possible to keep the two plates of the clock open. The second plate is round, has a toothed edge and measures 3.26 in (83 mm) in diameter: it is slightly smaller than the octagonal base which it rests upon and overlaps when the instrument is closed. The recto is gilded and there are three concentric graduated circles engraved on it: - the outermost is the equatorial hour dial, numbered I-XII, I-XII; - the second-one is that of days 1-30 of the lunar month and has “Aetas lunae” engraved on it; - the third, silvered, is a subsidiary hour dial, with double numbering 1-12; originally it could have been rotated. The engravings of the first two circles are enameled in red. In the center - on the polar axis - there is an alidade, at the end of which is associated the silvered minute dial. This, in turn, is welded, perpendicularly, to a small disc, also silvered, with a triangular gnomon. The plate, alidade and minute dial are connected to each other by toothed mechanisms. Below is the procedure for measuring the time: 1) Adjust the Cam under the base of the clock, based on the latitude of your location; 2) Place the watch on a flat surface using the plumb-bob and with the side closest to the compass facing south; 3) Keeping the instrument still, manually rotate the alidade until the shadow cast by the triangular gnomon on the small silvered disc falls on the line marked below it; 4) The hour and minutes can therefore be read on the hour and minute dials set on the alidade respectively. Johann Michael Bergauer, who sometimes only signs his works as Michael Bergauer, was born in Simonsfeld, north of Vienna. His apprenticeship as a watchmaker took place in Landshut and he probably worked as a laborer in Augsburg before becoming a watchmaker at the court of Karl Philipp von der Pfalz in Innsbruck in 1708. In the following years, his repeated attempts to obtain Innsbruck citizenship are documented and, in 1721, he is listed as a resident. In 1724 he was admitted to the guild of watchmakers, with which however he had continuous problems. In 1732 he presented a "masterpiece". This is the last reference to his business; he must have died before or in 1745 because in that year his widow appealed to the City Council. The mechanical sundial...Category
Antique 1730s Austrian Baroque Scientific Instruments
MaterialsBrass
- Ancient Boxwood Micro Carving Deposition, First Half of the 18th CenturyLocated in Milano, ITBoxwood micro carving Deposition Central Europe, first half of the 18th century It measures: the sculpture 7.40 x 5.31 x 0.6 in (18.8 x 13.5 x 1.6 cm); w...Category
Antique 1740s European Baroque Figurative Sculptures
MaterialsBoxwood
- Italian Ancient Marble Sculpture Fountain, Late 16th CenturyLocated in Milano, ITSea monster Carrara marble mouth fountain Italy, late 16th century It measures 13.8 x 31.5 x 18.9 in (35 x 80 x 48 cm) State of conservation: some small evident gaps and widespread signs of wear due to outdoor exposure. The gray marks crossing it do not come from restoration, but are rather the natural veins of the marble. This work has some morphological characteristics typically associated with the iconography of the sea monster: an elongated muzzle, sharp teeth, protruding eyes, elongated ears, and a coiled serpent's tail. An in-depth series of studies on artistic depictions of the sea monster attempted to verify how this symbol evolved in antiquity in the European and Mediterranean contexts and how it gradually changed its image and function over time. The iconography itself is mutable and imaginative and its history is rich with cultural and artistic exchange, as well as the overlapping of ideas. This occurred so much that it is difficult to accurately pinpoint the "types" that satisfactorily represent its various developments. However, we can try to summarize the main figures, starting from the biblical Leviathan and the marine creature that swallowed Jonah (in the Christian version, this figure was to become a whale or a "big fish", the “ketos mega”, translation of the Hebrew “dag gadol”). Other specimens ranged from the dragons mentioned in the Iliad (which were winged and had legs) to "ketos” (also from Greek mythology), the terrifying being from whose Latinized name (“cetus”) derives the word "cetacean". See J. Boardman, “Very Like a Whale” - Classical Sea Monsters, in Monsters and Demons in the Ancient and Medieval Worlds, in Papers presented in Honor of Edith Porada, Mainz am Rhein 1987, pp. 73-84). In Italy the monster underwent yet further variations: it can be found in Etruscan art on the front of some sarcophagi representing the companion of souls, while among the Romans we find the “Pistrice” (cited by Plinio in Naturalis Historia PLIN., Nat., II 9, 8 and by Virgilio in Eneide: VERG., Aen., III, 427), which appeared in the shape of a stylized hippocampus or a very large monstrous cetacean and evolved into a hideous being with a dragon's head and long webbed fins. During the Middle Ages, the sea monster was the object of new transformations: at this time, it is often winged, the head is stretched like a crocodile, the front legs are often very sharp fins - sometimes real paws - until the image merges with dragons, the typical figures of medieval visionary spirituality widely found throughout Europe (on this topic and much more, see: Baltrušaitis, J., Il Medioevo fantastico. Antichità ed esotismi nell’arte gotica, Gli Adelphi 1997). In Italy during the 15th and 16th centuries, the revival of classicism - representative of the humanistic and Renaissance periods - led to a different reading of these "creatures". Indeed, the sea monster was also to find widespread use as an isolated decorative motif, especially in numerous fountains and sculptures where dolphins or sea monsters were used as a characterizing element linked to water (on this theme see: Chet Van Duzer, Sea Monsters on Medieval and Renaissance Maps, London, The British library, 2013). From the morphological point of view, the "sea monsters" of this period are mostly depicted as hybrid figures, in which the body of a mythological or real being (a hippocampus, a sea snake, a dolphin), is joined to a head with a rather indistinct appearance. It was usually characterized by large upright ears, an elongated snout, sharp teeth and globular, protruding eyes; a complex and indefinite figure, both from the symbolic point of view and from that of its genesis. The work we are examining is placed as a cross between the medieval sea serpent and the Renaissance dolphin, with stylistic features which recall the snake as often used in heraldry (such as the "snake" depicted in the coat of arms of the Visconti - the lords and then dukes of Milan between 1277 and 1447 - and which, for some, may be derived from the representations of the “Pistrice” that swallowed Jonah). In the search for sources, Renaissance cartography and in particular woodcuts should not be neglected. See for example the monsters of Olaus Magnus, from the editions of the “Historia de gentibus septentrionalibus” (“History of the peoples of the north”) and the natural histories of Conrad Gesner, Ulisse...Category
Antique 16th Century Italian Renaissance Animal Sculptures
MaterialsCarrara Marble
- Glass Parrot-Shaped Sculpture, Dino Martens, Venice, Aureliano Toso, 1953-1956By Dino MartensLocated in Milano, ITParrot-shaped sculpture Psitaccus Dino Martens (1894 - 1970) Vetreria Artistica Rag. Aureliano Toso, 1953-1956 It measures 9.055 inches in height x 4.13 in x 5.90 in (23 cm, 10.5 cm x 15 cm) It weighs 1.997 lb (906 g) State of conservation: intact. The small glass sculpture...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Modern Glass
MaterialsBlown Glass
You May Also Like
- Meissen Group of Three Dogs Model 2104, Johann Joachim Kaendler circa 1830-1840By Johann Joachim KaendlerLocated in Vienna, ATMEISSEN MOST LOVELY ANIMAL FIGURINES: GROUP OF THREE DOGS Stunningly painted in most lifelike manner (the dogs are painted in dark and bright brown as well as red brown and white & black). Earthen base with Rocaille ornaments existing. Please note: The modelling of dogs' skin and creation of their lifelike impression were a most difficult procedure for modeler as well as for sculptor: This hard job could be done only by Meissen masters in 18th century. Designer: Johann Joachim Kaendler...Category
Antique 1830s German Rococo Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Meissen Deal with Goose Model 720 Johann Joachim Kaendler Made circa 1850-1860By Johann Joachim KaendlerLocated in Vienna, ATMeissen stunning figurine group: The Deal with Goose Model 720 Measures: height 6.69 inches (17.0 cm) width 6.69 inches (17.0 cm) depth 4.72 inches (12.0 cm) Manufactory: Meissen Hallmarked: Blue Meissen Sword Mark (glazed bottom) model number 720 / former's number 6 / painter's number 71 First quality Dating: 19th century / made circa 1850-1860 Material: porcelain, glossy finish, multicolored painted Technique: handmade porcelain Style: Rococo Modelled by: Johann Joachim Kaendler...Category
Antique 1850s German Rococo Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Pair Meissen Porcelain Pug Dog Figures With Pup After J.J.KaendlerBy Meissen PorcelainLocated in Bridgeport, CTA beautiful pair of heavy Meissen porcelain figures of Pug Dogs with gilt bell collars on blue ribbons.The larger Pug with attached pup. Exquisitely hand-painted with realistic tones and colors. Each Pug is wearing a vibrant blue color ribbon collar...Category
20th Century Regency Animal Sculptures
MaterialsPorcelain
- Meissen Porcelain Birds on Gilt Bronze Mounts / Johann Joachim KändlerBy Johann Joachim Kaendler, Meissen PorcelainLocated in Dallas, TXtwo (2) Meissen porcelain birds (bitterns), from 1743 model by German sculptor Johann Joachim Kändler (German, 1706-1774), each on a base of re...Category
Antique 19th Century German Baroque Animal Sculptures
MaterialsBronze
- Large Mythological Meissen Group 'Triumph Of Venus', by J.J. Kaendler, c. 1870By Meissen Porcelain, Johann Joachim KaendlerLocated in Vienna, ATRare and excellent porcelain sculpture: Depiction of Venus, the Roman goddess of love and beauty (Greek: Aphrodite), as a young woman with her hair tied back at the nape of her neck,...Category
Antique Mid-19th Century German Baroque Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
- Large Meissen Pair Of Gardener Figurines, By Kaendler & Schoenheit, Ca 1860By Johann Carl Schoenheit, Johann Joachim Kaendler, Meissen PorcelainLocated in Vienna, ATGardener couple consisting of two individual figures. The female gardener wears rural rococo clothing: a dress with elaborate floral decoration and pinne...Category
Antique Mid-19th Century German Baroque Porcelain
MaterialsPorcelain
Recently Viewed
View AllMore Ways To Browse
Porcelain Black
Silver Bear
Porcelain Figures
Porcelain Head
Antique Porcelain Figures
Antique Germany Porcelain Marks
Antique German Porcelain Marks
Meissen Porcelain Marks
Porcelain First Period
Bear Bear Porcelain
Meissen X
Artist Marks Porcelain
Meissen 18th Century
Antique Silver Hair
Meissen 18th
18th Century Meissen Porcelain
Meissen Large Porcelain
German Porcelain 18th